We are using cookies to provide statistics that help us give you the best experience of out site,
You can find out more or switch them off if you prefer. However, by continuing to use this site
without changing settings, you are agreeing to our use of cookies.

Reviews

Avengers Assemble Related News Articles

Ed Norton has been discussing his decision to turn down the opportunity to play the Hulk in The Avengers, and while not playing down the significance of his call, doesn't express any regrets whatsoever.

"My feeling was that I experimented and experienced what I wanted to," said Norton to NPR, when discussing his initial turn as Bruce Banner.

"I really, really enjoyed it. And yet, I looked at the balance of time in life that one spends not only making those sorts of films but then especially putting them out, and the obligations that rightly come with that."

"There were just a lot of things... I wanted more diversity. I sort of chose to continue on my path of having a diversity of experiences. Maybe on some unconscious level, I didn't want to have an association with one thing in any way degrade my effectiveness as an actor, in characters."

"I think you can sort of do anything once, but if you do it too many times, it can become a suit that's hard to take off, in other peoples' eyes. And if I had continued on with it, I wouldn't have made Moonrise Kingdom, or Grand Budapest, or Birdman, because those all overlapped with [Avengers]."

"And those were more the priority for me, but I continue to be a fan and I'm really, really happy I got to do it once."

Lindsay Lohan has claimed that she was nearly cast in The Avengers, only for an "unknown" to be cast in her place.

The star made the claims in the latest episode of documentary series, Lindsay, in which she went on to bemoan her manager not pushing her hard enough in the audition process.

Lohan stopped short of naming the part or the actress in question, although given the paucity of female roles in the film, it has been suggested that Maria Hill and Cobie Smulders are the names she is referring to.

Just how much truth there is to Lohan's argument is unclear, although it would certainly have been an eye-catching piece of casting had she made it into Joss Whedon's film.Source: www.totalfilm.com

Amid all the box office success, critical plaudits and general fanboy love, there have hardly been two cross words to rub together where The Avengers is concerned. However, Jeremy Renner is one dissenting voice, having not been happy with how his character came across in the finished film.

"For 90% of the movie, I'm not the character I signed on to play," says Renner, before homing in on the decision to have Hawkeye brainwashed by Loki from the get-go. "It's kind of a vacancy. [He's] not even a bad guy, because there's not really a consciousness to him."

"To take away who that character is and just have him be this robot, essentially, and have him be this minion for evil that Loki uses... I was limited, you know what I mean? I was a terminator in a way. Fun stunts. But is there any sort of emotional content or thought process? No."

To be fair to Renner, he does fall under Loki's spell remarkably early in proceedings, with the character barely having time to establish himself before becoming a pawn in the God of Mischief's game. He also gets next to nothing in the way of backstory, unlike his super-powered chums.

"Is [Hawkeye] working for SHIELD or not?" muses Renner. "There's a lot of unanswered questions, even for me." Unanswered questions that could be answered in a standalone film? Given Renner's attitude to The Avengers, we'd say that possibility is receding...Source: www.totalfilm.com

After the phenomenal success of Avengers Assemble, it's all systems go over at Marvel. Not content with crafting its ambitious set of post-Avengers 'Phase Two' movies, the studio is now looking into making a TV series set in the Avengers universe.

No firm details about exactly what they're planning yet, but Marvel is currently talking with TV goliath ABC about the idea.

According to Deadline, the studios are discussing a "kernel of an idea", and the series could have a fairly loose connection to the Avengers universe.

Don't expect to see Thor, Captain America or Iron Man popping up, then. So what form would the TV show take?

Well, our best bet is a show exploring the inner workings of S.H.I.E.L.D, with no end of Marvel characters they could draw in from lesser-known titles to guest star.

Interestingly, FX channel are also currently mulling over the pilot for the Marvel-inspired Powers. ABC might have a bit of competition in the superhero TV stakes, then.

For the time being, Marvel is moving forward with its 'Phase Two' set of films, which includes sequels Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Thor: The Dark World and Iron Man 3 alongside new properties Guardians Of The Galaxy and Ant-Man.Source: www.totalfilm.com

The Avengers will assemble to the sound of a new song from Seattle grunge-merchants Soundgarden, who have recorded their first new song in fifteen years to head up the Marvel movie's rock-heavy soundtrack.

Having recently reformed to widespread jubilation (particularly after their barnstorming headline set at Lollapalooza), the band have knocked up new ditty Live To Rise, which will take pride of place on a soundtrack containing the likes of Rise Against, Scott Weiland and, er, Papa Roach. You can check out a snippet of the new song, below...

Whilst Soundgarden have been out of the studio for quite some time, lead singer Chris Cornell has previous form when it comes to Hollywood soundtracks. After all, it was he who penned You Know My Name, the Bond theme that announced Daniel Craig's arrival as 007 in Casino Royale.Source: www.totalfilm.com

Tie-in toys for Marvel's The Avengers may have revealed one of the big, villainous threats our heroes will face in the upcoming epic.

Anyone with a dislike of spoilers or spurious, toy-based evidence should run along now. Go.

Gone? Right then, we'll continue. Toy lines (or candy lines for that matter - we're glaring at you PEZ) can often reveal a secretive element of a movie before the filmmakers are ready to unveil the surprise.

MTV Geek have gone and spotted some tie-in toys at Jakks Pacific's Toy Fair 2012 that seem to confirm the presence of alien threat, the Skrulls.

The pink figurines, which you can see below, are part of an Avengers boardgame, so they're certainly not hard evidence that the Skrulls will actually appear in the film.

So, do you think those things we saw falling from the sky in The Avengers Super Bowl trailer were Skrulls?

If you hate spoilers, click away now as this is a bit of a major one. Seriously, if you want to go into Joss Whedon's Avengers unspoiled, close your eyes right now. Then attempt to navigate your way off this page. We wish you good luck.

Because we love comic-books at Total Film we're eagerly anticipating the Avengers. Not least because it's the first superhero flick to combine Marvel's biggest characters into one movie, in the grand tradition of the comic-book crossover. And it looks like Whedon is lining up the ultimate movie crossover, throwing in a character we hadn't expected to see until a distant Avengers sequel. According to Jenny Agutter, the first Avengers flick will feature a surprise appearance from Marvel's greatest superhero. That's right, your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.

"I'm sworn to secrecy. I wasn't allowed a script until I got there, and when I did I felt like a complete child being on big sets and a huge parking lot full of Winnebagos," Agutter told The Radio Times.

Agutter went on to say one of those Winnebagos was reserved for Iron Man and one was for Spider-Man. We imagine it's red and blue, and contains a fridge full of flies and science books.

Now, Agutter's statement does make our spider-senses tingle a little bit - after all, Sony owns the rights to Spider-Man's big screen adventures, and Marvel owns the Avengers, so the studios would have had to draw up some fairly complicated contracts to make this happen but the fact this is a Joss Whedon film gives us hope. This is exactly the kind of awesome Joss brings to his projects, and we really, really hope he's pulled it off.

And surely Sony wouldn't pass up a bit of free promotion / goodwill for The Amazing Spider-Man, which is out a couple of months after Avengers? Either way we can't wait to see The Avengers. Now more than ever. Excelsior!Source: www.totalfilm.com

Forget trailers, interviews and on-set photography... when it comes to getting the drop on the latest Hollywood blockbuster, examining your local toy shop is the way to go. Last week Total Film reported on how a remote-controlled car had given away a first proper look at The Amazing Spider-Man's Lizard, and this week, a new toy appears to have given away one of The Avengers' biggest secrets.

Take a look at the following promotional blurb from HeroClix, manufacturers of the official line of Avengers action figures and see if you can spot anything surprising...

"Charging straight out of theaters and onto your tabletop, Marvel's the Avengers Movie HeroClix set features heroes like Captain America and Thor as they battle the villainy of the Red Skull and Loki!"

The Red Skull? Well, that's a new one on us! Last time we saw Hugo Weaving's crimson-faced villain, he was vaporised by the power of the Cosmic Cube at the end of Captain America: The First Avenger.

However, as any Marvel fanboy will tell you, the Cosmic Cube's weird, reality-altering energies can do all sorts to those they ensnare, including transporting someone through time and space...

Presumably HeroClix haven't knocked up a Red Skull action figure just for the hell of it, so expect to see the Avengers facing off against more than just Loki when the film arrives in UK cinemas on 27 April 2012.Source: www.totalfilm.com

Scarlett Johansson has been talking about her ongoing involvement in the Marvel universe, suggesting that she would be open to filming a Black Widow spin-off film if the opportunity were to arise.

"I love playing the Widow," she told Superherohype. "I think she's got a very interesting past, a lot of storylines to explore, and certainly Kevin [Feige] loves that character."

"I think that Marvel has a very personal relationship with their fans," she continued, when asked about the possibility of a Black Widow movie. "I think if the fans want it, and the audience wants it, nothing's impossible.

"I would love to explore that option as well," she says. "Like I said, I love the character and it would be nice to see something nice and gritty."

As well as the possibility of her own spin-off (maybe exploring her relationship with Jeremy Renner's Hawkeye?), there's also the small matter of Iron Man 3 on the horizon. However, according to Scarlett, an appearance in that film doesn't look likely at present.

"I've heard nothing," she admits. "You know how it goes. Sometimes two days before, it's like, 'And here's your next mission.' I have no idea."Source: www.totalfilm.com

For those of you with fond memories of Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow crushing necks between her thighs in Iron Man 2, we have good news! Scarlett is reportedly insisting her Avengers character gets as many scrap scenes as the boys in Joss Whedon's superhero spectacular.

"Scarlett is making a point of not being the token woman in the movie," says ShowbizSpy. "She has had extra action scenes already but is still wanting more. She's also been very reluctant to have her character be a love interest for the male heroes. Scarlett wants Black Widow to be on a level with the guys if not even more super!" So, Scarlett wants her powerless Russian assassin to be even more super than a Norse god, a gamma-ray infused rage-beast, a mega-genius with laser-cannons strapped to his arms, and a star-spangled shield-flinging super-soldier. Fair enough, we say.Source: www.totalfilm.com

And according to Hiddleston, he'll also be joining the superhero fray, reprising his role as Thor's insidious brother Loki.

"Well, I think it was a plan from the get-go, but it wasn't really dead-set until near the end of Thor," Hiddleston tells Vulture. "What was wonderful is that about four days after I wrapped on Thor, I went out for a cup of tea with Joss Whedon.

"We sat down at two o'clock in the afternoon, and we were still sitting there at six o'clock. He said, 'Listen, you've lived with this guy for six months. I want you to spill the beans and tell me all of his dark secrets. Who is this guy? Why is he who he is?'"

Hiddleston goes on to add that his version of the character "accorded with Joss' idea of the character, too", before adding:
"I'm really so flattered that Marvel and Joss think I can take them all on. In Avengers, it's going to be me versus seven of them, and I say 'Good luck to them,' frankly."Source: www.totalfilm.com

You may have been stuffing your face with Easter Eggs on Sunday, but Joss Whedon was busy preparing The Avengers.

The director (notable for his snarky sense of humour) took to fansite 'Whednonesque' to update fans and, amongst other things, officially announce that filming on Marvel's epic superhero team-up would start the following day.

He said: "Tomorrow [Monday 25th] we start shooting (I THINK I'm legally permitted to say that). Day one. That's right. We'll be shooting the pivotal death/betrayal/product placement/setting up the sequel/coming out scene, at the following address:

"[Marvel Lawyers rush in, take Joss's keyboard, blowtorch a picture of his family like in "Stormy Monday", drink his milkshake, leave the seat up, fluff his pillows, violently unfluff his pillows, leave]

"Went too far. My bad. Anyhoo, it should be a fun day, followed by the eighty thousand other fun days it will take to finish this."

Whedon went on to add: "So wish me luck. DO IT! LUCK! NOW! I'm off to finish some Buffy pages, and then figure out what the movie is about already.

"I'm pretty sure it's about the Justice League [Marvel Lawyers re-enter, unspeakability occurs] or possibly something else. I'll get it. I've been looking forward to this. For about 46 years."

The film is currently shooting in New Mexico and is heading towards a 4th of May 2012 release date.

Joss Whedon has been busy working away at his movie adaptation of The Avengers, and it seems that a script for the film has finally been completed.

Chris Hemsworth, who plays Thor in this year's, uh, Thor, and will head up Avengers, has read the script. Lucky for us, he's given MTV his reactions.

"Everything about the story and the comic books is huge," he says. "You have these huge, big superheroes and huge, big egos crammed into one small space.

"Reading the script, it was massive. Everything about it was like, ‘Oh my god.' I said to Joss, ‘I don't know how you're going to shoot this thing [laughs], but I'm excited to be onboard and let's give it a go.'"

Hemsworth also took the time to address rumours that Jeremy Renner's Hawkeye would be cameoing in Thor, revealing: "I haven't seen the cut yet, and he wasn't on set when I was there."Source: www.totalfilm.com

Please note that although the UK cinema release date schedule on
FilmDates.co.uk is updated regularly,
a release date can change at very short notice. Usually the closer a film is to
its release date, the less likely its release date (and any other information)
will change.FilmDates.co.uk is also not
responsible for the content of any external website. The links are provided "as is"
with no warranty, express or implied, for the information provided within them.